Millsboro murder suspect arrested in Harrington

A 24-year-old Millsboro wanted in the November shooting death of his step-father was arrested in Harrington on Wednesday.

By Scott Goss

A 24-year-old Millsboro wanted in the November shooting death of his step-father was arrested in Harrington on Wednesday.

Cullen B. Phillips was taken into custody as he entered a home in the 200 block of Central Park Drive about 12: 15 a.m., state police said.

Phillips has been wanted since Nov. 5 when he allegedly shot his 46-year-old step-father Clifford Paynter Jr. in the chest with a rifle during an argument at the older man’s home in the 26000 block of Doc Frame Road on Nov. 5.

Paynter was later pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

A family member who called 911 told police that Paynter fled the area on foot.

Troopers from the Kent County Governor’s Task Force received a tip from the Crime Stoppers service about 9:15 p.m. on Tuesday that Paynter was hiding out at a home in Harrington.

State police homicide detectives and officers from the task force, the state office of parole and probation and the Harrington Police Department then staked out the home until Phillips arrived.

Phillips is charged with first-degree murder and possession of a deadly weapon during the commission of a felony.

He is being held at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in Smyrna without bail, police said.